While OS X Lion offers many improvements and new features, it also takes some away. One that jumped out to me right away was the missing Library folder. By default, Apple now hides this folder to prevent users from messing up their system. While this might not seem substantial to the average user, more advanced users might not like this change. Fortunately, this change can be reversed, as I’ll show you in this video.

An option, when using the Go Menu, to show the Library folder is to go the Go menu, and press the Option key, which enables a lot of hidden features in OS X. You’ll then see that the Library folder is displayed in the Go menu pull-down menu.

Cheryl Kelly

Thank you. Maybe I will get a diamond charm for showing him this article :)

David Parke

if you have to be told how to re-enable this rather than figuring it out on your own, you shouldn’t be messing around with the Library folder in the first place

Sheldon Stokes

You made a video for a 27 character terminal command?! You should at least parrot the command in your text.

chflags nohidden ~/Library/

dcj001

His Terminal is not blurred. It’s translucent. You can probably find the instructions for doing this online.

Andy Murdock

Nice, classic snotty nerd comment!

Jimmy Röstlund

Or, you can just use the ‘Go’ menu in Finder and hold the option key. Just as fast as navigating to the folder in the first place.

Michael Steeber

neat tip.

Michael Steeber

it’s called Aerogel, bundled with Lion.

Mind WarrioR

useful comment.. thanks

Steven Chaffer

Just hold the option key while clicking on “GO” in the finder menu bar. Simple.

Honyant

If you haven’t yet installed Lion move the library folder to the sidebar in finder before making the move and it will stay there.

CharliK

Showing off your brilliance. Or at least attempting to.

This was NOT a topic that needed a video. Then again, most of them don’t. 3 bullet points would have been enough. For that matter one would be fine. Anyone grown up enough to play in his Library Folder is grown up enough to try Go to Folder: ~/Library and find that there it is waiting for him

Anthony Gomez

Aerogel? Do they sell that next to the Astroglide?

Willa_Dunn

Why would you want to go through Terminal if a simple setting will do the trick?Just go to Finder Settings -> Navigation and select one or both devices ‘iMac of…’ or ‘Hard disks’. That’ll do the trick neatly.

Iliy Naidenoff

… guys i have a question if I go to Terminal and hide the Send Registration icon … will this affect my MacBook or no? and do i use (((( chflags hidden ~/Send Registration )))

@lucascott Agree with fd. This is a decent topic worth explaining. when was the last time you ever helped anyone out? you are a loser

Jeffreyjh

awesome tip. thanks!

CharliK

Just because I don’t see the need to try to look cool by making ‘nifty’ and questionable done videos doesn’t mean that I don’t help folks out. Or that I couldn’t do a better job than you, FD or Michael.

And I never said it wasn’t a topic ‘worth explaining’. I just disagree that a video was the right way to do it. And even if it was, that this video was done well.

CharliK

Doesn’t work. Said folder is flagged to be hidden, so it will be hidden whether you go to the hard drive first, the home folder first etc

What you will see is the system library folder bit not your user folder where all the good stuff is

CharliK

You can also open a finder window and put it into multicolumn mode then do the Option+Go menu to open the Library in that window. If you scroll ‘back’ you will see the Library folder in the column and you can grab it and put it in the sidebar

Electrovir

Couldn’t you just post what you actually do as text so I don’t have to listen to you blabbing about it? I know what the problem is I want to know what to do!

Foxtrot2807

To bad your solution didn’t work. Got the message no such file.

Called Apple, they gave me a very easy solution:Open finderclick on “go”push the “ALT”key and the library folder pops up in the favorites bar.

peace of cake

About the author

Michael Steeber is a student who is obsessed with everything Apple. He enjoys making videos and runs the MSComputerVideos YouTube channel in his free time. You can follow him on Twitter as well.

(sorry, you need Javascript to see this e-mail address) | Read more posts by Michael Steeber.